An unexpected injury
by Youngsoul
Summary: Oneshot collection about Kageyama's and Hinata's relationship as the younger is very prone to injuries. Added part 3: A morning begins horribly as an earthquake causes the members of Karasuno volleyball team consider the death of one of their members.
1. A match gone wrong

**I just watched the first five episodes of Haikyuu! and I just loved it!  
I continued to read the manga and as I was doing that, I found myself writing a fanfiction about it.  
This takes place somewhere after Noya and Asahi appear but before the spring preliminaries.  
About this chapter:  
RATING: T (mentions of blood)  
STORY: Hinata gets injured during a match. Kageyama is there for him.  
Disclaimer: I don't own Haikyuu!  
**

* * *

The match was intense.

Neither team was ready to back down, both aiming for the nationals, and definitely not ready to lose in such place.  
Karasuno had been training relentlessly and their play had become better by the day and it could also be seen in the scores. They were winning the first set 23 to 15. Still, none of them were about to take it easy.

The opposing team had a very tall ace, and his spikes were nothing to be joked about. If it weren't for their bad team-play, Karasuno would really have been in a pinch. The ace seemed to be very bad-tempered and he was shouting at his teammates the whole time in a nasty manner.

Soon enough, the first set was over and the teams could take a breather.

"Hinata, Kageyama, well played. Keep it up!" Daichi said as the two first-years tried to catch their breaths.  
"Osu!" the two shouted simultaneously.

"Still," Sugawara began with a serious tone. "That ace is something else. There is no way to block him. The only reason we are holding up is because their team-play is frankly horrible and because we can count on Noya to receive the ace's spikes if they get through our block." At this, Noya looked very proud of himself as the others nodded in agreement. "Let's not lose our concentration," Sugawara finished. The others agreed and so the next set was starting.

Unbeknownst to the Karasuno team, the ace of the Riyuuzaki team was boiling with rage as they moved into their positions.

_'That god-damn chibi! What's his deal?! He is so tiny, yet he plays the Middle Blocker?! What's up with that?! And that jump-power... It pisses me off!' _The ace, Kuroshima thought angrily. He watched the orange-head smiling at his teammates so child-likely.

_'I can't stand him! I want to rip that smile off his face!' _With those thoughts, Kuroshima walked to his position and glared at Hinata. The younger noticed this, and so did his teammates.

Hinata didn't want to admit it, but the big guy was intimidating. With his height, he could easily be a basketball-player and the angry look in his eyes could make anyone shiver in fear, and looking at him now, he had marked Hinata as his target. Hinata felt himself back down a bit.

"Oi! Hinata!" a voice shouted beside him. The orange-haired turned to look at the Setter, Kageyama. Though they had their differences, they were still a team. "Don't get scared. Focus. You won't lose as long as I'm here." Hinata looked at Kageyama for a while before managing a small smile and nodding. As he turned to look at the opposing team's ace, he was no longer afraid.

Without Hinata knowing, this action had just made Kuroshima snap.

–

The game started and Hinata wasted no time in finding the spot where there were no blockers. Like usual, Kageyama's toss was accurate and Hinata was able to make a successful quick set.

Then, however, the opposing team made their move.

The ball was on the Riyuuzaki team's side and was headed towards the wing spiker on the left side. Unlike Karasuno thought, however, the ball didn't go back to their side but got tossed to the setter, and from there to the ace.

Hinata saw that he was the only one who had any chance of blocking the spike and so he jumped with everything he had got. _'Please reach, even to slow it down!' _he thought as he was in the air.

The opposing ace had other ideas. _'I got you now, you chibi!'_ Kuroshima thought as he too, jumped.

Hinata realized too late what was about to happen. Kuroshima wasn't aiming over Hinata- he was aiming straight _at _him. There was only time to take a short gasp before the ball collideded with Hinata's face and the younger was left falling from his high jump, unable to protect himself in any way.

The last thing he saw was the ceiling and the bright lights before he felt a sharp pain in the back of his head and he passed out.

**_Kageyama's POV:_**

I saw how the bastard looked at Hinata before he made the spike. There was something unnatural about it.  
I realized it too late that he wasn't planning on doing anything honest.

As Hinata jumped I felt a feeling of foreboding grasp my chest tightly. Everything seemed to slow down as I saw both of the players in the air, Hinata jumping higher than I had ever witnessed, trying his hardest to block the ball. Kuroshima had a dark look on his face and I soon understood why. The position of his hand-! Before I could think any further, a hard snap was heard as Kuroshima hit the ball, hitting Hinata straight to his face with obvious full force. Usually I wouldn't be too worried about him, but now as he had almost jumped over the net (even though that sounded impossible), I admitted I was worried.

I saw his body fall back from the impact, completely unable to try and avoid the inevitable. A sickening sound resounded through the hall as Hinata hit the floor head-first.

"HINATA!" we all shouted. I couldn't hear my own voice through my panic. Hinata had fallen completely limp. He wasn't moving. I ran to his side in an instant, as did all the others.  
The match came to a halt. None in our team cared.

"Hinata! Hinata! Oi! Wake up!" I found myself shouting as I knelt beside the younger boy, shaking him slightly. The others had gathered around us, seemingly afraid to touch the unconscious boy. They were saying things to each other, but I wasn't listening.

I lifted Hinata's upper body up, trying to support him the best I could. My hand supported his head and I found my breath catching in my throat as I felt something wet and lukewarm. I moved my other hand to support his head as I looked at my hand. There was blood.

"Blood! He's bleeding!" Tanaka shouted in clear panic. I couldn't say anything. I was in a shock.

How did this happen so quickly? One second he was fine and the next he was on the ground, unconscious and bleeding.

A firm hand on my shoulder made me snap out of my thoughts.

"Kageyama, it's okay. We'll handle it from here," Daichi said and I could do nothing but nod hesitantly.

I rested Hinata's body gently down on the ground before I got up and moved away as Sugawara and Daichi brought in a stretcher which they put on the ground before moving to check on Hinata. The other didn't respond in any way and so they lifted him up as gently as they could and put him on the stretcher.

The way Hinata's head lolled as he was lifted up from the ground made me feel sick.

Hinata was a cheerful person, and in all honesty, he was a fun guy to be with. He was so innocent and child-like, yet there was a strong determination inside of him which drove him to always try his best. He had gotten hurt a bunch of times, as he was painfully clumsy, but this time it was different. It wasn't because of his clumsiness that he had gotten hurt. No, it was because of _him._

I turned to watch at the opposite team's ace, and I felt my blood begin to boil. He was _smirking_. The bastard was happy about what he had done!

I stomped angrily before him, and to his luck, there was the net between us. If it hadn't been there, I would have been tempted to grab him and punch him.

"Oi," I started with a low tone. "What the _hell_ do you think you are doing? You just injured our player," I hissed in anger. Kuroshima's smirk just grew wider.  
"Oh, that little chibi. He was in the way so I got rid of him. Any problems with that, _Setter_?" he sneered.

I felt myself snap. I wasn't going to be able to hold my anger in. My fist, covered with Hinata's blood, curled into a tight ball. I was going to punch this guy.

I took a step forward with my fist raised, but I was stopped.

"Kageyama! Stop it!" Asahi almost shouted and held a firm hand on my shoulder. I noticed that I was shaking with rage. "That won't solve anything." Even though I understood, I just wanted to do nothing else but to punch Kuroshima's face in.

"He did it on purpose! Because of this guy Hinata is-!" Akashi interrupted my sentence.

"-Hinata is okay. What we need to do now is beat these guys in a fair match." After those words, I was able to calm down. _'Hinata is okay. He will be okay,' _I thought and took a step back. I took a deep breath and faced Kuroshima again.

"We will win this match." It wasn't a threat, it was a fact. I would make sure of it.

–

Like I promised, we won the match.

A sudden fire had appeared inside all of us and we fought unlike ever before.

The outcome was 2:0/ 25-15, 25-8. Both sets were won by us, and the last one 25 to 8.

It was a crushing defeat for the opposite team, just like it should have been.

I felt myself relaxing after payback was served. Unlike usually, there weren't too many cheers from our side saying that we won. This time we just gave smiles off success, as the outcome was something that was necessary.

As we made our way to the lockers, I was happy to notice Kuroshima falling to his knees in defeat and his teammates leaving him behind.

–

When we arrived to the lockers, we saw Hinata resting on the middle benches, upon the stretcher he had been brought on. He looked a bit out of it, but he was awake and talking to Takeda, who had been taking care of him as the others were on the court.

As they heard the team coming into the room, they turned to look at them right away with waiting looks.

"How was the match?" Hinata asked with a tone that wasn't quite like his usual self. All of us gave a smile and looked relaxed.

"We won," Daichi announced, making a huge smile appear on Hinata's face before he shot up from his position on the bench. "Really?!" Before he could say anything else, his body swayed and he gripped his head in displeasure.  
"Hey, lay down," Takeda said and pushed the younger back on the bench.

"Shouldn't you go to a hospital? That looks serious," Asahi said and walked next to Hinata before kneeling down to his eye-level.

"I tried to take him, but he was too stubborn to leave. He wanted to hear the outcome first," Takeda explained with a long sigh.

The conversation continued with the teammates saying how stubborn Hinata was being as the younger just seemed happy to be surrounded by his team.

I couldn't really hear what they were talking. I was just so relieved to see Hinata awake and talking. His unconscious figure had shocked me as we all knew that he was always able to get up, no matter what happened. This time had been different. It had honestly scared me.

"Oi! Kageyama!" The cheerful voice chirped. I looked up to see Hinata sitting up, his face a bit paler than usual, but his smile there like it should have. "Thank you for winning." At those words, I felt a bit embarrassed for some reason and so I averted my gaze, muttering, "Of course."

A silence passed over the room before the players started changing their clothes.

"Hinata, you need to change too. After that I will take you to the hospital to make sure you are alright," Takeda said. "Now, I have to take care of something. I'll be back in a moment." Saying that, Takeda left the room. I saw the serious look on his face as he left, definitely plotting some sort of revenge himself.

I had just finished changing when I saw orange-hair in the corner of my vision. I turned around just as I heard someone ask: "Hinata, what are you doing, lay down, you idiot!" Hinata was standing up and was walking towards his locker. He looked so unsteady on his feet that I found myself walking over to him.

"Oi, idiot," I called out for him and he turned to look at me with a sullen look. "Didn't you hear? Lie. Down." He just stared at me.

"I need to change," he stated, ignoring me. I was getting ticked off by him and so I grabbed his arm and shoved him down on the bench. I only realized my mistake as Hinata winced, making a grimace.

"Ah, S-sorry." I was happy that the other members didn't say anything about my actions. Hinata held his head before shaking it. "It's okay. Don't worry about it. I'm fine."

"You're 'fine' my ass. Look at yourself." I gave a long sigh, saying, "I'll help you."

Hinata looked at me like I would have just turned into another being entirely. "Huh?! You? Helping?" I had no idea how the kid was able to do it, but he always managed to anger me.

"What's so strange about that!?"

"Everything!"

The other team members gave a long sigh.

"Come on Kageyama, don't do that. Not now," Sugawara said with a serious tone, making me realize what I was doing again. I saw how weak Hinata looked again, definitely feeling worse after our little banter. He was pale, and even though he hadn't been running around the court, he was breathing heavily.

Without saying anything else, I walked over to Hinata's locker and pulled out his clean clothes. Hinata looked sullen as I went over to him. I gave a short sigh and tried to control myself. I couldn't get angry now. I would do it some other day when Hinata was feeling better.

"Hands up," I ordered and Hinata looked at me for a short while before complying. I pulled his damp uniform top over his head. Hinata looked red in the face as he was half-naked before me.

I suddenly realized how awkward the situation was and so I found heat rising to my face as well. I quickly helped him put the clean t-shirt on.

I knew that I had to continue what I had started as I noticed Hinata holding his head again and the way his eyes seemed to be unfocused. "'You okay? Do you want to lay down?" I asked with a softer tone that I had intended. Hinata didn't seem to notice the change in my voice as he took a few deep breaths and shook his head.  
"No, I'm okay." I didn't trust his words, but I decided to help him change so that he could be taken to the hospital. I really hoped that he was alright and there was no serious damage done to his brain. The collision hadn't been light and the blood had been a proof of that. I suddenly noticed that there was no bandage around his head.  
"You're not bleeding anymore, are you?" I asked. Hinata looked at me and managed a small smile. "No." Hinata looked at me with a strange look. "I'm okay, honestly. Don't look so worried!"

"Well, I am," I stated. Hinata stopped smiling and looked at me in surprise. I stayed completely serious. I knelt down to remove his knee-protectors and change his socks. Takeda had already helped him remove his shoes, which I was thankful of. As silence passed between us, I could almost hear what Hinata was thinking and feeling that moment.

"You know," I started. "You played well today. I know you're frustrated about what happened but, this time only, it wasn't your fault."

"What do you mean, 'this time only'?!" he snapped back at me, but I knew it was halfhearted.

"Well, you are really clumsy," I told him before silence fell again.

"Anyways, we won. Not only because we needed to do so in order to move on, but also because Kuroshima hurt you. There was no way we would let a guy like that win." Hinata was silent, probably due to surprise. I pulled his other sock off his feet before I reached for the clean pair.

I thought that it would be difficult to put on socks for someone else, but Hinata's feet were smaller than I thought, and so the socks slid in place easily.

I got up and looked into Hinata's eyes. There was a deep look in them which told about many feelings. Trust, Gratitude, and a kind of promise was passed through those brown orbs. No words were needed. Still, I could see even more through that strong gaze. Behind the obvious feelings was the feeling of disappointment towards himself, and the weakness he wished to hide.

I took Hinata's arm and draped it over my shoulder before slowly lifting us up. I instantly noticed how Hinata swayed before slumping against me, unable to stand on his own.

"Sorry, I'm..a little dizzy," he said and tried to straighten himself.

"No, it's okay," I said and reached for his shorts. I realized that it was such a weird action, that I had to ask for permission.

"Can..I help you with this?" I asked a bit hesitantly, and I noticed the orange-head push his lips together in embarrassment before giving a nod.  
I carefully slid the shorts off, trying not to look at his underwear before I rested Hinata back down on the bench.

Hinata kicked the shorts off of his ankles before he reached for his jerseys. I waited until Hinata had pulled the fabric as high on his legs as he could while sitting, before I gestured him to lean onto me again. He gave a dangerous sway as he lifted himself upright and I had to grab his arm so he wouldn't fall over. "Seriously.." I muttered before I helped him to stand up again.  
I held his jerseys up so they wouldn't fall before he had time to pull them up and he quickly grabbed them out of my grasp and pulled them up as far as he could with the one arm he could use. As I saw that he couldn't get the other side up far enough, I found myself grabbing the other side and pulling it up. A strange, surprised huff was heard from Hinata, but I decided to ignore it. There was no reason to make things any more weird than they already were.

Once Hinata was dressed in clean clothes and was finally able to sit on the bench, I could return to my own locker. I pulled out my jacket, which had our school's name on its back and put it on.

I had a nice and refreshed feeling. We had just won a game that had been unlike all the others we had played up until now. This had been deep in a whole new level. Now that it was settled, I felt like I could move on with a clear head. At least I thought so for a few seconds.

"Hinata!" someone shouted. I turned back in a flash to see Hinata sprawled on the bench, apparently having collapsed there. He was breathing heavily and he had his eyes tightly closed. Had he passed out again? I rushed to his side, like did many others.

"Hey, you okay? Hinata?!" I almost shouted, worry evident in my voice. I was relieved to see Hinata opening his eyes slowly.

"Sorry...I'm just really dizzy... Everything is so..." After saying that, Hinata's eyes fluttered closed, yet he still seemed to be conscious.

It was the perfect timing as Takeda walked in.

"Takeda, you need to drive Hinata to the hospital right away. I don't think he is alright at all," Daichi said while he was resting his hand on Hinata's shoulder to give him some sort of comfort. Takeda looked shocked for a while before nodding. He walked next to Hinata and was about to ask him something, but I butted in. "I'll help him." There was a shocked silence in the locker for a while before I tapped Hinata on his cheek. "Oi, Hinata." The orange-haired opened his eyes again and even though they were a bit unfocused, I knew that he was listening. "Do you think you can-" Before I even finished the question, I knew the answer. "-No, forget that. I'll carry you, okay?" Hinata just stared at me for a while, as if trying to figure something out, before giving a tired nod. As that was enough for an answer for me, I pulled the kid up so he was sitting. There was a grimace on his face again and he puffed his cheeks suddenly, before holding his hand before his mouth. Me and all the people around me understood what was going to happen.

"S-someone! The trash-bin, a paper bag, anything!" Tanaka shouted, and thankfully, the nearest trash-bin was quickly passed in front of Hinata before he threw up. It was no strange sight or smell for the members, but this time they felt even more sympathy for the boy.

One sure sign for concussion was feeling sick, and Hinata had now definitely shown them that. He was also feeling very dizzy and the fact that he had passed out from the hit for quite some time worried them all.

Once Hinata had finished and the others had made him drink some water and helped him clean up his face, I returned to my earlier task.

I knelt in front of the orange-haired so that my back was towards him. "Come on. I'll carry you." I was pretty sure that the kid looked dazed and unsure about everything that was going on. Soon I heard some shuffling behind me and the voices of the captain and some other members before I felt a weight on my back. They had helped Hinata on my back. I got up and repositioned Hinata slightly. I noticed that he was almost completely limp, possibly barely holding onto his senses.  
"Hey, Hinata. Hold on tight, okay? And whatever you do, don't pass out." I felt a small nod on my back and it was enough for an answer. Takeda walked before me and opened the door.

"Kageyama!" Sugawara called out for me before I left. I glanced back at him. "Take care of Hinata, okay?" I noticed that all the members wore the same serious look as he did and so I could only nod. I would take care of him. It was just like the game had been- it was no guess or wish, it was a fact.

* * *

"Hinata! Welcome back!" I heard someone call during practice. I was just about to do a receive, but it got all forgotten and the ball fell right next to me as I turned around to look at the entrance.

There he was, smiling confidently and waiving at us. "I'm back!" he greeted, and by then, everyone had run to him, myself included. Well, you can exclude Tsukishima from that.

Nishinoya ruffled the orange hair while grinning. "You little idiot, getting us all worried!" There was a small blush of embarrassment on Hinata since being the center of attention, but I knew it was also due to the honest happiness of being back.

The kid got taps on his shoulders and back and was led inside by the team.

"So are you really well enough to be playing?" Asahi asked in worry. Hinata nodded, "Yeah, I'll just take things a bit more careful for some time but I'll soon be in perfect form again, don't worry!"

"You take your time, Hinata. We don't want you having a concussion again," Daichi warned.

"Yeah," Hinata said before stopping suddenly. "I-I'm really sorry for making you all worried and especially for not being in the matches lately..." There was a moment of silence before Tanaka gave a hard slap on Hinata's back, making him stumble forward in surprise. "What are you saying? You know you can count on us! We're not weak!"

"That's right. And those matches were won for you, that you could rest up without any worries," Sugawara said proudly. Hinata looked at him with wide eyes, as if asking if he really meant it. When he saw that everyone in the team looked the same, he understood that they weren't joking.

"Hey! Practice isn't over yet!" Coach Ukai called them suddenly. "Oh! Good to have you back, Hinata!" he then added. The rest of the team ran back to their positions, but I stayed next to Hinata. I saw him looking down at the floor, hiding his feelings.

When I understood that he was crying, I pressed my hand over his head before I ruffled his hair.

"Idiot. These people are your teammates. You would do the same for them, right?" I felt a small smile forming on my face as I felt a nod under my hand.

"T-thank you Kageyama." I removed my hand from his head but we still didn't move.

"Of course. I would seem pathetic if we were to lose just because you weren't there." An amused huff was heard from Hinata and I looked back at him to see him wiping his tears and look up to me.

"Well, for that, but I also meant thanks for what you did back then. I..didn't really get to thank you properly." The sincerity in his eyes made my composure sway a bit.

"Oh... Yeah. That." That day's happenings flashed inside my head again. "You're welcome."

Hinata flashed a really bright smile before he gave me a pat in the back.

"Come on! Let's practice!" he said cheerfully and ran off. I watched his retreating back with a smile, but at the same moment I knew that the way I saw him had changed drastically and was probably never going to change.

_**-Flashback-**_

We reached the hospital and Takeda helped me to lift Hinata on my back again. The boy was all limp now.

"Oi! Hinata! Get a grip! You can hear me, right?" I asked the other. Hinata didn't answer me and I got very worried but when I felt a weak grip on my shirt, I instantly felt better. He was hanging on.

We rushed inside and Takeda told me to wait there without jostling Hinata around any more than necessary. I nodded and stood there, watching as Takeda talked to a nurse before he turned around a corner and disappeared.  
I was getting impatient. How many minutes had passed already? Maybe none.

"Hinata?" I asked. I clearly heard the panic in my voice, but I didn't care. However, the grip on my shirt was gone and the boy wasn't answering me.

I got so worried that I went over the the nearest set of seats before I knelt down to set Hinata down. I held his other arm so he wouldn't fall before turning to see him. I took a shaky breath when I saw him. He didn't look good. His brows were tightly furrowed and his eyes were closed in displeasure. I sat next to him and tried to give him a light shake on his shoulder.

"Hinata. Hinata!" I called him and I was glad when his eyes opened slightly. He just stared at me wordlessly.

"Are you in pain?" I asked, not able to think about anything else to ask. A bit breathlessly, Hinata answered, "Yeah..." This answer shocked me, as I had not thought about it before then. Obviously he was in pain. How could I have been so stupid that I hadn't thought about it?

"Wait here. I'll get you some water." I was about to get up, but a weak hand grabbed my wrist. I turned around just as I saw Hinata falling towards me. With my quick reflexes, I was able to catch him before he fell.

"Hina-" I was about to say, but the boy cut me off.

"-No, don't go. Don't...go..." His voice was wavering strangely. Was he... crying?  
I held him upright by his shoulders and I was surprised when his hands found my shirt before gripping it tightly, pulling himself towards me. I soon found myself in the position where Hinata was resting against me as I just didn't know what to do with my hands. I stared at the messy orange head in shock.

"I'm scared. I don't-" Hinata gulped as his voice was wavering too much. "I don't get this. Don't go." After my shock finally subdued a bit, I was able to rest my other hand on his back to give him some comfort.

"Don't cry, you i-" As I noticed that I was about to insult him again, I snapped my mouth shut. This wasn't the time. Concussion wasn't something to be played with. Hinata was acting like this due to the confusion the impact had caused. He didn't need anything more that could make him feel worse, especially from me.

I gave Hinata a rub on his back. "It's okay. I'm not leaving." It was unlike me to say stuff like that, but I figured it was the right thing to do.

I was glad when I heard familiar footsteps.  
"Kageyama, can you bring him here? I can ask for someone to bring a wheelchair or a stret-"

"-No. I'll take him," I cut him off. I turned to look at the younger. "Hinata, put your arms around my neck," I said with a soft tone to the younger. His hands let go of my shirt and traveled upwards before his arms were securely in place around my neck. He kept his face stubbornly against my chest as I put my arms under his knees and back before lifting him up.

I walked behind Takeda for a while before a nurse appeared and guided us to a room. A doctor greeted us when we reached the room and he instantly ordered for Hinata to be rested on the bed inside. I did like he told and put Hinata down as carefully as I could. I saw that his face was twisted in pain again.

The doctor walked over to Hinata before he touched his shoulder but at this action, Hinata gave a violent flinch and his eyes shot open in shock. He stared at the unfamiliar man before he shook his head and tried to move away.

"N-no! No!" he almost shouted. I understood what was happening and so I shot up and held him down. "Hinata! Hinata! Look at me! Oi!" At my words, the boy turned to look at me with begging eyes. "He is a doctor," I explained, "He will take care of you. Relax. Everything is okay." Hinata's hand grabbed my arm before he gave a hesitant nod. I took his hand into mine and held it. I knew that he needed the comfort now.  
I gave the doctor a nod and he tried again.

"Hinata Shōjō-kun, can you tell me if you are in pain?" the doctor asked. Hinata gave a nod.  
"I will have to take a look at that wound of yours. I will turn you to your side now." After those words, the doctor gently pushed Hinata to his side. I noticed that the younger tensed at the touch, but now that he was facing me, he relaxed.

I saw as the doctor inspected the wound carefully.

"It looks like the bleeding has stopped and the wound wasn't big. There will be no need for stitches." The doctor straightened himself before looking at Takeda.

"Has there been nausea?" Takeda nodded, "Yes, right before we left, he threw up."

The doctor nodded at this. "Did he lose consciousness?"

"For at least three minutes."

"Was there confusion after that?"

"Right after he woke up he seemed out of it more than usual. He had a trouble remembering where he was," Takeda answered calmly and professionally.

"Has he lost consciousness again after waking up?"

"I don't think so. He has seemed to be at the brink of losing it many times, however." The doctor nodded again. I was getting frustrated by the overly professional act he had. Hinata was in pain! I wanted him to do something!

"Any signs of memory loss?"

"No."

"Alright. There will be further examination later but for now we will hospitalize him and observe him for at least three days." I was a bit shocked. Three days? Was it that serious? Looking at Hinata's pained face, I knew that it was.

The doctor made a quick call to someone, but I wasn't listening. I just looked at Hinata. He opened his eyes and looked at me with those scared eyes. I rested my hand against his shoulder.  
"Everything is okay. Don't worry about anything." Saying that, I saw him relax a bit.

There was a knock on the door before a nurse appeared.

"The stretcher is here," she said and the doctor nodded. He walked over to us and seemed to be about to lift Hinata up. I freaked out at the sudden action and blurted out: "No!" before I could even think about it. The doctor looked at me in surprise before I explained myself. "I- Can I do that? I think he's a bit..scared." The doctor then nodded and told me to bring him outside the room, where the stretcher was.

I lifted Hinata's arms around my neck again before lifting him up.

–

Seeing him sleeping there with a calm face was more than enough to calm me down after a long day. Hinata had been put through various tests and he had to change into hospital clothes among with many other things he had to do and the questions he had to answer. Finally, he had been given something for the pain, and now the kid was completely out of it.

I could finally rest.

Takeda looked pretty exhausted himself, and I knew that I didn't look any better. Hinata was not good with hospitals apparently. I wasn't sure if it was due to the fact that he had been just so confused about everything due to the concussion, or because he was bad with them in the first place. Still, it meant that I hadn't been able to leave his side for even a moment when he had been awake.

"Hey Kageyama, let's head home. Hinata's family will be here any moment." Hinata's family? Now that I thought about it, I had never seen them. Obviously the boy had one, even though I had never thought about it.

"Yeah. Let's go." As we were about to exit the room, I looked back at the boy, remembering his words from earlier: _"Don't go." _As I thought about those words, I swore that I would come back the next day. And even the next if needed.

After the door closed behind me, I knew. I would visit him as long as he had to stay in hospital, just like I knew everyone else in the team would.

_**–Flashback over-**_

"Kageyama! Stop spacing out!" someone called me and when I looked up, I received a ball in my face. The throw had been light and so it didn't really hurt. It just left me grumbling in annoyance.

I saw Hinata staring at me with hands on his waist, looking as if he had just done something admirable.  
I walked towards him in slight anger, but it soon faded as his smile didn't waver. He knew I wouldn't do anything to him. He had noticed the change between us too. And maybe.. it wasn't too bad.

We shared an unexpected smile before Hinata turned to return to the court where we had been practicing.

"Hey, Kageyama," he then started, his voice all serious, "If something would happen again, I can count on you, right? You...won't go anywhere, right?"

I was surprised by his tone and those words, but even more about the slight fear I heard. I guess I wasn't the only one who had gotten freaked by his injury.

"Yeah. I won't go anywhere." I realized as I said those words that it wasn't the first time I had told them to Hinata, and as he turned around to give me a thankful smile, I knew that he remembered it too.

After that, the orange-head threw his hands up and ran while shouting: "YOOOSH!"

I gave a tired smile before I felt a hand on my shoulder.

"You have finally been completely sucked into his pace, haven't you," Daichi commented.

I gave a huff, "Definitely."

But... it was fine that way.

* * *

**As I had not even been introduced to Coach Ukai when I started, his role was very very small. Uncharacteristically so.  
I am not too certain about this story as I just seemed to write it for the excitement of finding a new series.  
I hope you liked this story, be sure to leave me a review if you did and you might have a chance of reading more of these.**


	2. A teammates worry

**Please tell me why the first oneshot was so popular!  
It's frustrating that it was so short and written so quickly, yet it became my most popular story almost instantly. I just don't get it. You weirdos.  
Anyways, since I thought that I owed all you readers a thanks for such lovely feedback, I decided to write another oneshot. You're welcome.  
I guess if I feel like it, this could become a collection kind of thing. That is, if this oneshot receives good feedback.  
About this chapter:  
RATING: K+  
EXTRA:** **This can be read as a sequel to the first chapter, but also as a separate oneshot. The match that they mention here is about the match that happened in the first oneshot.  
STORY: Only Kageyama can get Hinata to snap out of his self-centered attitude. That's his job as his...?  
**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Haikyuu!**

* * *

_**Run, jump, spike, receive, toss.**_

Hinata had been practicing volleyball relentlessly for the last two weeks. Whenever he had time, it was all about training. Still, he felt like he needed to do more.

_**Run, jump, spike, receive, toss.**_

He felt like he had failed the whole team and himself in the match over a month ago as he had only been on the court for less than one set. It made him feel frustrated that after he had gotten hurt, his friends had had to carry his weight. He was supposed to be the strongest decoy for his enemies and he had only ended up distracting everyone in the team.

_**Run, jump, spike, receive, toss.**_

Even though he had swore to become strong enough to be recognized by his own ability, why was it so difficult?

Hinata let out a shout as he ran and spiked a toss made by Kageyama. It worked like usual, but this time there was added, unneeded strength to it. The ball collided to the floor in the opposite side of the net just a moment before Hinata's feet were back on the ground.

Even though it was just simple practice, the team fell completely silent. The only sound they heard was Hinata's heavy breathing as he had been pushing himself unnaturally hard once again. Every one of them wished for someone to speak, to tell him to stop already! But as everyone still had the memory of the small orange-head snapping at them when they had tried to do just that, no one dared to speak. Well, expect one.

"Oi! Hinata! What are you doing? Calm down," Kageyama scolded the other, marching next to his obviously tired figure. The shorter boy lifted his body up straighter and turned to face the setter. Everyone watching knew from Hinata's look what was going to happen next.

"What are you talking about!? I need to practice! There is less than a week to the next training match and I still have ways to go!" Hinata now noticed that everyone around them had stopped to stare. "What...what are you doing? Why are you just staring? Even though I'm trying my best...!" Seeing how Hinata was just riling himself up, Kageyama decided to put the end to it. He grabbed Hinata's head and began dragging him away from the court.

"HEY! Kageyama, let go! Let go!" Hinata shouted in protest, but the other listened to none of it.

Suddenly remembering where they were, Kageyama stopped and looked at his upperclassmen.

"Uh, is it okay if I take this guy outside to cool down a bit?" he asked them politely while pointing at the orange-head in his grasp.

Knowing that the young setter was the only one who could talk sense into the small first-year, Sugawara and Daichi gave an encouraging smile. The captain was more than happy to send the two off with a "Yes!"

The rest of the team could only smile (Tsukishima only inwardly as he is such a tsundere), as Hinata was dragged out from the gym.

Nishinoya gave a laugh and crossed his hands behind his head in amusement. "Seriously, Tobio is more like Shouyou's mom than a teammate!"

Tanaka laughed along with everyone and continued, "no, he's more like a wife than a mother."

Everyone agreed and returned back to their practice, knowing that Kageyama would take care of Hinata.

–

Kageyama shoved Hinata outside and closed the heavy door behind them. He watched as the other fell on his butt on the ground before his face twisted in anger. "OI! What do you think you're doing!? This isn't the time!"

The taller stared at the younger without emotion. "This is exactly the right time."

Hinata answered the other only by staring at him intensely. He then broke their eye-contact and stared at the ground, his face unreadable from under his bangs. "You're...not letting me go back inside, are you?" he asked in a more calm voice than Kageyama expected.

"That's right. If you continue with the pace you have been having lately, you're going to break your body, or worse, you'll..." Kageyama trailed off as he watched the other. He hadn't moved from the ground and was still staring at the cold concrete floor. "...start hating volleyball," the setter then finished even though the thought of that happening made him feel somehow sick inside. Hinata was almost an embodiment of love towards volleyball. The thought of him not liking it anymore was unthinkable. At least that's what Kageyama had thought up until that moment. Looking at the slightly older teen now, he wasn't so sure anymore.

Hinata then suddenly pushed himself up and walked towards the other. Kageyama noticed that he wasn't heading towards him, but rather behind him and so he thought that the other was going to put up a fight.

"Oi, I told you, I'm not letting you go inside. The training is over for you today." Hinata unexpectedly crouched down beside Kageyama, making the other look down in surprise. He saw Hinata picking his shoes up from the steps before sitting down and starting to change them with his volleyball shoes.

"Idiot, I'm not going inside."

Kageyama felt victorious. He had managed to change the rock-head's mind!  
"Good. Now then, go home and rest for today and tomorrow-" before Kageyama could finish his sentence, Hinata stood up and walked away from the other.

"-Who said that I'm not going to train anymore? I'm going running, idiot~!" the shorter said and pulled the skin under his right eye as he showed his tongue before taking off running.

Kageyama's face turned red in anger for trusting the other for one second to listen to what he had been saying.

"Damn you! Come back here!" he shouted while putting on his own shoes in haste. He ran after the other while shouting at him in anger. Why couldn't the other just listen to him, even once!?

He knew what route the other would take so it didn't worry him as he lost the sight of him once or twice. It took him a good ten minutes to catch up to him and by then, they were far away from the school grounds.

"Hinata! Just listen to me!" Kageyama shouted while running just behind the other. "I don't get why you suddenly started to act like you do, but it won't do you any good! If you just keep pushing yourself, you'll just end up falling harder. You know that yourself, don't you?" Kageyama tried to speak reason to the other, but the orange-head just kept his head up high as he ran. That moment his figure reminded the taller of his younger self so much that his frustration level peaked. "I thought you knew! It was always you saying it, after all: 'Everyone on your side of the net is your ally!', 'You can't win a game by yourself!' Look at yourself! Right now, you're not trusting anyone and you're trying to do it all by yourself! I thought that you hated people like that, right, Shouyou!"

That sentence finally struck a chord inside the other. Though Hinata kept running, his mind was running wild. He knew that Kageyama was right. Somehow, the other had known just the right things to say in order to make him feel unsure about his own actions.

Realizing that he truly was pushing himself too hard, his body instantly started to feel heavier. Hinata started recognizing aches that he hadn't even noticed that were there, and the terrible pain in his head became clear. Still, being stubborn as he was, he kept running. Well, that was until he wasn't able to control his tired legs properly anymore, causing his step to become loose. His ankle twisted as he stepped and his entire weight crashed onto that wrong movement.

Hinata let out a surprised yelp as he fell down on the road.

"Hinata!" Kageyama shouted and ran to the orange-haired boy. "Are you okay?" he asked, but right as those words had left his mouth, he noticed Hinata's pained expression.  
"M-my ankle!" the shorter gasped in pain. Hinata moved his body so that he was sitting down instead of being on all fours, causing there to be less strain on his injured ankle.

"Show me." Kageyama said firmly, causing the other to be unable to object.

Kageyama noticed that there was a railing behind them and so he decided that it was easier to inspect the leg when the other was sitting off the ground. "Come on, I'll help you on that railing. Can you stand?" Hinata nodded, but was in obvious pain. The taller offered the other his hand and pulled the other up. He winced at the movement, but was able to jump to the railing with his one good leg with Kageyama's help. Once he was sitting, he let out a shaky breath.

The setter crouched down and carefully pulled the injured leg closer for inspection. He saw that the ankle wasn't in a weird position or anything, so nothing too serious had happened to it.  
"Can you move it?" Kageyama asked and watched as Hinata stared at his ankle in displeasure. He gritted his teeth and let out a pained hiss as he moved his ankle.

"Good. At least nothing is broken," Kageyama stated. He undid the knot on Hinata's shoe and pulled it off before he removed the sock to confirm his suspicions. The skin had already began to darken on Hinata's ankle.

"It's definitely sprained," the taller stated before giving a sigh. "Seriously... This is exactly why I told you to calm down!"

Hinata stared at the ground in shame. "I get it...! I'm...sorry, okay?" he admitted. His face was twisted in sadness and all the earlier anger was gone. Now, he was just Hinata again and not the 'King-Hinata' as Kageyama would refer that stubborn and more-than-usually-stupid part of him.

Knowing that things were actually okay again, Kageyama let himself relax again. It was strange to notice how the orange-haired boy's moods always seemed to affect him.

Kageyama pulled Hinata's sock up around halfway before he stood up and threw the shoe in his hand to the older one's lap. The other caught it and turned to look at the taller in surprise.

"Put that sock on so that we can get back to the school. We can put a cold pack on that ankle there." Once Kageyama had finished his sentence he crouched down with his back to Hinata.

The middle blocker just stared at the other in confusion. "Kageyama, what are you...?"

The other looked at Hinata over his shoulder in annoyance. "Idiot, you can't walk, right? I'll carry you."

"Eh?"

"Don't 'Eh' me! It's getting cold out here already. Hurry up." Finally understanding that Kageyama was really, truly willing to give Hinata a piggyback-ride, the shorter quickly pulled his sock up. Noticing that the other was ready, Kageyama leaned back a bit so it was easier for him to get on. Hinata's arms were soon around his shoulders and his body pressed against Kageyama's back. As the taller put his arms under Hinata's legs he was mindful of the injured ankle. Once the shorter (and much lighter as Kageyama noted) was securely on his back, he got up and started walking down the hill they had run up.

The two were in complete silence for a long time before Hinata let out a muffled cry. Kageyama stopped in shock and asked in worry, "does your ankle hurt?"

Hinata shook his head against the setters back. "It's not that... it still hurts though but... I just..." he trailed off, his voice wavering suspiciously.

Respecting Hinata enough to not push him to talk when he wasn't feeling stable, Kageyama started to walk again. He knew that the other would talk if he felt like it. It didn't take long until he was proven right.

"I'm really pathetic, right?" Hinata stated.

"Why do you say that?" Honestly, Kageyama knew why but he also knew that the other wanted to have this conversation.

"I just keep messing everything up. I can't even support my team."

"What are you talking about? You're always doing your best for us, aren't you?"

"But.. back then, that match.. I was supposed to be the decoy... everyone was counting on me. Then I got injured and I just ended up putting pressure for the team as I couldn't play for a while. It...really got me frustrated."

_'Ah, so that's what the reason was,' _Kageyama thought to himself before answering to the other, "I've said this a bunch of times but you **really **are an idiot, Hinata." The body against the taller player tensed in annoyance, but the other didn't pay it any heed and continued, "even though it hasn't even been a year yet, you know how our team is. Sugawara, Daichi, Nishinoya, Asahi, Tanaka, Yamaguchi and even Tsukishima and the rest... none of them thought that you put pressure on us. That includes me." Hinata sifted slightly at that. "If someone gets injured, we will just try harder for their sake. You get it, don't you? If it had been me injured back there, you wouldn't have given up, right?"

Hinata shook his head again as a reply.

"That's what a team is. So, stop thinking about stupid stuff and get your head together, you damn Baka-Hinata. I can't toss to you like this."

Hinata's arms closed a bit more tightly around Kageyama's shoulders, but he didn't reply to the other. Soon, there was a nod accompanied with a wavering, "Un!" which earned an amused huff from the setter.

"You're not alone, Hinata," Kageyama suddenly voiced his thoughts. Thankfully, Hinata was unable to see his face as he was grimacing from the cheesy-sounding sentence, and so another nod was the only answer he got.

–

"Bwahaha! Kageyama! I thought that you were going to go knock some sense into Hinata!" Tanaka laughed.

"Suddenly he's turned into a big-brother more than a wife," Sugawara made a comment, him being the only one able to hold his laughter back.

Kageyama's face was turning more red than any tomato they had seen in embarrassment, along with the anger and annoyance. He was standing by the door, unable to even remove his shoes to walk inside the gym as his hands were still occupied by Hinata who had, for some reason, fallen asleep! It the most embarrassing predicament that Kageyama had been in in a long time. The entire team was making fun of him! Not able to take it anymore, Kageyama turned to look over his shoulder as far as he could and shouted: "Oi! Hinata! **Wake. Up**!"

It did the trick as Hinata's eyes snapped open and he leaned back in surprise, causing Kageyama to lose his balance and almost fall. The two shouted at each other for a while as the other team members just kept laughing.

"Looks like Hinata is feeling like himself again," Sugawara said from the sidelines with a smile. Daichi nodded, "yeah. Kageyama would make a good boyfriend for him yet." Sugawara looked back at Daichi in shock and surprise, but the other had already turned to walk away. The light haired setter gave a nervous laugh to himself, wondering if the captain had truly just joked.

"Come on, everyone! Let's clean up for today! Hinata, make sure to put a cold pack on that ankle!" Daichi shouted, causing everyone to stop what they were doing.

As most of the players ran to put away the equipment, Kageyama put Hinata down on the floor slowly. The other gave a hiss of pain as he had to put slight pressure on his ankle, but he soon lifted it up so he wouldn't repeat the mistake.

Kageyama removed his own shoes, while Hinata did the same for his remaining one. Once finished, Hinata started jumping towards the cooler box where all the cold packs were kept. He had taken a few jumps when he let out a surprised yelp as he lost his balance and was about to fall. Expect that he didn't. A hand had grabbed his shirt from behind and now he was more or less dangling in the air.

"I can't leave you alone for even a second, can I?" Kageyama asked in annoyance and helped the other to stand up again. He put his arm under the smaller one and started to lead him towards his destination.

"Sorry about this, Kageyama," Hinata said with honesty.

"Don't mention it. I told you right," Kageyama locked his eyes with Hinata's and gave a rare smile, "we're a team."

* * *

**And there you have it.  
I apologize for any grammar mistakes, I have been writing this entire day and it's 2 am right now and so I cannot guarantee that my check-reading went really well.  
Did you like it? Please leave a review if you did.  
**


	3. A quake in earth and heart

**Hey everyone!**  
**Thanks for all the reviews, favorites and followings. Due to all the positive feedback, this story is now officially becoming a collection!**  
**I would be glad to accept ideas for the future, so don't be shy to send requests.**  
**About this chapter:**  
**RATING: T (due to Kageyama's bad language)**  
**EXTRA: The other Karasuno volleyball members are in a bigger role than usual.**  
**STORY: A morning begins horribly as an earthquake causes the members of Karasuno volleyball team consider the death of one of their members.  
EDIT: July 11 - Earthquake magnitude  
**

**Disclaimer: not unlike the times before, I don't own Haikyuu!**

* * *

It was early in the morning, hours before the start of school, yet a sound of running and a light ball hitting the floor could be heard in the gym of Karasuno high school. If someone curious had happened to be around and had taken a peek inside the building, that person would have seen a lone figure inside practicing volleyball.

The boy was a first year, Kageyama Tobio, and it was no secret that he would sometimes practice even before school had started. But there was one thing amiss - he never practiced alone. Not without his partner.

Kageyama stood before the net, a ball cart next to him full of volleyballs, before he threw a ball in the air, tossing it as it hit his hand again. The ball flew in a gentle curve right towards the edge of the net where an empty bottle stood. As the toss had been so accurate, the ball collided with the bottle and toppled it over.

Anyone who knew anything about the team would have known that the bottle represented Kageyama's partner, Hinata.

The first-year walked over to the fallen bottle on the floor before lifting it up. He stared at the clear plastic container - which had once held water - for a while longer as a strange worry was starting to form in his gut.

He wasn't supposed to be practicing alone. Hinata had promised to be there that morning and he never broke a promise if it had anything to do with volleyball. Kageyama couldn't help but to chuckle – Hinata was such a volleyball-freak!

Still, where was that idiot?

A voice then interrupted his thoughts.

"Early today too, I see," the captain's voice rang through the almost empty gym cheerfully. Kageyama stood up to greet his upperclassman with a small and polite bow. "Good morning, Daichi-san."

The older smiled and looked around before his smile seemed to fade a bit under his confused look. "Huh? Are you alone? I thought you always like to practice with Hinata?" Kageyama let his worry show as he frowned and stared at the ground.

"He was supposed to be here almost an hour ago but he still hasn't turned up."

Daichi lifted his hand under his chin and seemed thoughtful. "Maybe it has something to do with the earthquake this morning?" he suggested.

Kageyama let his gaze fall, "maybe..."

Noticing how worried the younger looked, Daichi smiled widely and gave the boy a pat on his arm.

"Don't worry, I'm sure that he'll show up soon." Kageyama lifted his head in hurry to look at the other player.  
"I-I'm not worried! Why would I be worried about an idiot like that...?" the younger, and slightly taller, trailed off but his true feelings were conveyed even through those very tsundere-like words, causing Daichi to smile even wider.

"Now, how about we both get some practicing done?" the captain suggested, causing a look of determination appear on Kageyama's face again.

"Osu!"

Knowing that receiving was still tough for the first-year, Daichi decided to start there. He stayed at the other side of the net while Kageyama walked to the other side.

Unfortunately the two didn't have time to do much else before running footsteps were heard approaching. Daichi had just raised his hand to do an overhand serve but stopped to see who was coming.

Soon Sugawara appeared by the doorway and stopped his momentum by slamming his hand onto the wall. He was panting heavily, as if he had been chased around by something.

Daichi gave a short laugh before raising his hand again. "What is it, Suga? It isn't like you to be in such haste."

Sugawara swallowed and tried to regain his breath before he almost shouted: "It's really bad guys!" Before the light-haired boy had finished, Daichi had served the ball in the air. "-The mountain pass was closed off by a landslide!"

Kageyama had had his eyes on the volleyball, but as those words left his upperclassman's mouth he could only register them in his head.

The mountain pass was the road which Hinata used every day.

The ball became all forgotten and so it fell right next to Kageyama as he stood motionlessly. The ball bounced a few times – so loud in the completely silent gym that it almost hurt their ears – before it rolled away.

Kageyama could only chant Hinata's name inside his head in panic and worry.

"H-Hinata..." he then breathed and let his hands fall to his sides from the earlier receiving position.

Sugawara looked at the younger player before turning his gaze to the captain.

"Hinata isn't here?" There was evident worry in Sugawara's voice, which only amplified the feeling of worry inside the other two.

"N-no... He was supposed to be here almost an hour ago but he hasn't showed up..." Daichi said, his voice wavering.

"Any contact?" Sugawara pushed on while he removed his shoes and stepped inside.

"No... Nothing," the younger setter managed to utter.

Sugawara stared into the first-year's eyes sternly. "Call him. Make sure he's alright. The mountain road is blocked so he probably just can't get here but it's better to be sure," he said, his own voice steady. It was clear that he was being calm and rational about everything, making Kageyama realize that he himself was just freaking out for no reason. What were the chances that Hinata would have gotten involved in the landslide anyway? Probably close to nothing. The boy was definitely okay. Still, there was the tiny voice in the tall boy's head which he couldn't get out: _'Hinata was coming down that road exactly when the earthquake happened...the landslide must have happened right after it.'_

Kageyama walked (ran, actually, but he didn't notice this himself) to his bag before taking out his phone. He flicked it open and was disappointed not to find any new mails. Hinata hadn't tried to contact him. Trying to push away the thought that it wasn't normal for Hinata not to tell if he was unable to attend practice, he searched for the boy's number on his cell and called.

Kageyama turned his gaze to the two upperclassmen in the room while he waited for the buzzing kind of beep sound. It didn't help that both of them were staring at him in anxiousness.

Kageyama then suddenly removed the phone from his ear and stared at it with wide eyes, clearly startled by something.

"What is it?" Daichi asked, his tone sharp and alert. The younger player didn't turn to look at him, his gaze focused on the phone.

"I-it...doesn't connect. Hinata's phone is out-of-service." The silence that followed that sentence was the heaviest the three had ever felt. It was filled with dark feelings; worry, fear, anxiousness, dread.

"I-I'm sure it's okay! His battery is probably dead, or it might be because of this weather too! The cellphone towers might have gotten damaged or the mountains might block the signal. It's definitely alright," Sugawara tried, but it was a meaningless effort as his own voice wavered and was filled with uncertainty.

Daichi and Kageyama stared at the floor, both of them having their fists clenched tightly. That was until Daichi let out a sigh and seemed to relax a bit. "Anyway, standing here won't do anyone any good. Let's try to contact Hinata's family in case they know something. If not, then we inform the authorities. Today's practice is on hold until we get our player back safely," the captain said, his eyes serious as if they were in the middle of an important match. Kageyama closed his eyes for a moment and wished that it truly would have been so when he opened his eyes again. Unfortunately, the loud rumble of thunder brought him back to the reality that Hinata wasn't there with them.

– _**Two hours after landslide -**_

One hour had passed since Sugawara had stormed in the gym with the alarming news.

One hour since the worry had first crept inside their minds, and had now made them unable to think straight.

One hour since Hinata's whereabouts were unknown.

Sugawara – being the most calm of the three – had called Hinata's mother right after Daichi had given the suggestion. While the two had tried to occupy their minds with moving the equipment away, the oldest had explained the situation to Mrs. Hinata who had, unsurprisingly, turned from shocked to hysterical. It had taken the vice-captain a long while to calm the poor woman down but he had managed it even across the phone. Once he had said goodbyes to her he had ended the call and turned towards his teammates who had already been waiting for the news.

Sugawara had shaken his head sadly, "she had last seen Hinata when she left to work early this morning. She hadn't even heard about the landslide." It had been clear that the call hadn't been an easy one.

"So... that means Hinata really is missing?" Kageyama had asked, his voice lacking all of his usual strength.

Sugawara had nodded in answer and gripped his phone tightly.

The three had stayed in silence a long while after that, none of them knowing what to say.

"I will call the authorities now. They should know this," Daichi had said before he had made the most difficult call in his life.

That had been an hour ago.

Now, the three were standing in the corner of the gym in silence.  
One by one their teammates started to appear, all expecting for a normal morning practice to start, only to be told the news.

One voice turned to two, then three and four, until the gym was filled with worried voices.  
"Has anyone heard of him?", "what if he was caught under that landslide?!", "should we go look for him?", "maybe someone should call for help?", "that kid better be okay..!", all those sentences seemed to repeat by different people and get muffled as everyone talked at the same time. The air slowly filled with worry, anxiousness and frustration, yet the situation couldn't be helped. Hinata was missing and they had no idea what they were supposed to do.

_**- Two hours and twenty minutes after landslide -**_

"Hey! It's the news! Come quick!" a voice shouted, causing everyone in the team to stumble to their feet. They all ran towards the person who had called – namely Yamaguchi – who was holding a tablet computer in his hands. As everyone was surrounding him, the first-year turned the volume up higher so everyone could hear.

On the screen they could see a reporter, a woman with her hair usual Asian black hair bleached into a chocolate brown color, standing in a studio and explaining something with a serious expression

"-Today at 6:07 am an earthquake of the magnitude of 6.8 hit Miyagi Prefecture, causing some minor damage around the area." The picture changed to reveal some unfamiliar, old-looking houses which had apparently become slightly damaged due to the earthquake.

"The earthquake also caused a landslide in Miyagi District, which has currently cut off one of the mountain roads." As the picture changed once again, so did the mood within the players. The aerial picture of the familiar road shocked them as they saw the mass of earth and rocks blocking it. It would take days to clear it away, no matter how efficient the workers were.

"-There has been no reports of victims, but rescue workers are at the scene. We will return with more information later." The woman continued with other news which none of the players were listening to. Instead, they all stood in shock, no one knowing what to say.

"Hey... He didn't get buried under all that, did he?" Nishinoya asked, a bead of sweat rolling down his forehead as he tried to keep his voice steady.

"D-don't say stuff like that!" Tanaka shouted, but his tone revealed that he had been thinking about the same thing.

Kageyama stood up from his earlier kneeling position in complete silence. Everyone's eyes were on him, watching to see what his reaction would be. They all knew that he was the closest person in the team to Hinata as he was not only his classmate, but also his partner and rival in volleyball which they practiced together almost daily. However, whatever they expected from him, it didn't happen. He didn't seem freaked out or shocked. Instead, his expression was calm and only slightly more serious than usual as he turned to walk away from the others before pulling his phone out of his pocket. The others stared as the first-year dialed a number and put the phone against his ear. Only a few seconds could pass before Kageyama lowered the phone again only to stare at it in the kind of anger and worry which the others had expected to see a lot sooner.

"Who did you call?" Sugawara asked, his voice uncharacteristically serious. His tone already carried the answer to his question.

"Hinata. It's the same as before. Out-of-service."

_**-Two hours and forty minutes after landslide-**_

"Aaagh! I have had enough of this! We can't just sit around and wait like this, it's driving me crazy!" Tanaka shouted while shooting up from his sitting position.

The others, who were still sitting, stared at the other in understanding.

"I get that you're worried and frustrated but right now we can't do anything. Even if we went to the scene we would only be in the way of the authorities. We just have to be patient," Daichi said and tried to calm the other down even though he was feeling just as restless as the other.

The second-year gritted his teeth and clenched his fists before he gave in and sat back down.

The minutes were unbearably long. Everyone begged for someone to break the heavy silence over them, for someone to tell any good news, but it didn't happen.

Another agonizingly long ten minutes passed before Yamaguchi called again, "it's the news!" The effect was instantaneous: everyone scrambled on to their feet to watch the small screen in the first-year's hands, their lips pushed into fine lines.

The news reporter was the same as before and she gave the same introduction of the events as before. However, there was a difference in it this time.

"-The authorities have found evidence of someone being trapped under the landslide, thus turning it into a rescue. There is no report about who the victim or victims are, but we are closely following the incident and will report any further information." The woman continued with other news as the team was frozen in place. They all tried to shut out their own thought which told them that the victim was Hinata, and so they all were completely silent.

Kageyama was the first to move. He turned away and marched away from the others towards the door.

"Kageyama! Where are you going?" Daichi called after the younger, causing him to stop on his tracks and turn to look at the older.

"I'm heading to the scene. If Hinata is truly trapped under that, there is no way that I'm just going to sit around," the younger explained and turned to leave once again only to be stopped by the older one's voice again.

"Wait!" Kageyama looked furious as he stared at the older. Everyone in the room knew that the first-year wasn't going to listen to the older, no matter what he would say. However, Daichi had other plans in his mind. He sighed and pulled out his phone.

"Just wait. I'll call Takeda to give us a lift. It would take ages for you to run all the way over there."

Kageyama's anger disappeared right away.

"Captain!" Nishinoya exclaimed joyfully, all his respect towards the third-year returning.

"Hinata is an important part of this team. We really can't sit around like this," Daichi told while he dialed a number and put his cell against his ear.

"..Takeda-sensei? ...Yes, we have a situation."

_**-Three hours and fifteen minutes after landslide-**_

The minibus pulled into a stop on a steep mountain road right behind the cars which belonged to the police and other authorities.

The people inside ran outside as fast as they could before heading towards their true destination.

It chilled their blood to see the familiar road blocked by a huge pile of earth and the fact that they didn't know if one of their friends was trapped underneath made the feeling so much worse.

They had to stop where a red tape had been placed across the road to block any civilians from entering the area.

The volleyball team members stared at the scene before them, all of them feeling out of breath due to the anxiety in their chest.

"...Why are they all just standing there?" Someone then asked with a silent and wavering voice. The team turned to look at Nishinoya, who had voiced the question, before they followed his line of sight to confirm their fears. There were at least forty people around the pile of earth. No one was trying to dig it away. No one was doing anything to it. They were all just standing there. If their blood hadn't already turned freezing, it surely had now.

After recovering from the first shock, Kageyama lashed out. He ran towards the red tape and was about to go underneath it before his teammates stopped him by holding his arms. The first-year tried to struggle against his teammates, but realizing that he wasn't going to be moving he shouted to the officer standing with his back towards them a few steps away, "OI! What the hell are you doing?! Why are you just standing there?! Our friend could be under that! Why aren't you trying to save him?!" The officer turned to look at the boy, revealing his middle-aged face which turned from serious to sympathetic in moments. He adjusted his hat while he calmly, annoyingly so, explained the situation to the party of worried high schoolers.

"Unfortunately, we are unable to do much right now. You see, the earth is very unstable right now and if we were to dig, there is a danger that it could cause another landslide. Right now, we can only wait for the right type of machinery to arrive so we can continue the rescue. I'm sorry boys."

As Kageyama stopped his struggle, the hands around him loosened their grip and disappeared. The players only stared at the officer and the scene in shock.

"...You're kidding, right?" Kageyama asked, almost in a whisper. The officer only gave the same sympathetic look as before. He then saw Takeda with them and turned to him, seeing as he was the only adult in the group.

"You say a student might be trapped underneath? Can you tell his name? I'm sure it would help," the officer said and walked closer to Takeda as he gave a nod.

As the two men talked, Kageyama let his eyes travel across the scene. It was hard to believe that it was truly happening. Then, he saw something that he hadn't wanted to see. There were two officers who were examining something. Kageyama knew right away what it was. It was the reason why the incident had turned into a rescue. Even though bent and dirty, Kageyama recognized it. It was a bike. Hinata's bike.

"-that will be all. I will report this-HEY!" the officer cut of his own sentence with a shout as he noticed a figure running past him from the civilian area towards the scene. He cursed silently before he ran after the boy.

"Kageyama!" the rest of the team members shouted after the setter, who had suddenly sprinted under the tape. However, they knew why the first-year had done something like it and so they all followed suit. They weren't just going to stand around, doing nothing. They had a friend to save.

"Guys! Come back!" a call came from behind as the only adult in their group hadn't had time to stop any of them. Still, if there was a time to break rules, this was it.

Unfortunately, the high schoolers couldn't get far before they were caught by the police officers, who had nothing but time in their hands. Even though they tried to put up a fight, they knew that they wouldn't be able to fight their way out of this. Even Kageyama knew it, but he was reluctant to back down. He struggled against the officer who held him, trying to escape to the pile of earth.

"Damn it, let go! **Let go!**" Shouting those words Kageyama threw his head back, momentary surprising the officer and making his grip loosen. Taking this short chance, he ran again until he reached his destination. He fell to his knees before he started to dig the earth.

"Damn it! Damn it!" he cursed as he realized how futile his efforts were.

He knew how much time had passed. It was over three hours now since the landslide had happened. If Hinata was truly under the huge mass of land, there was no way that he could have survived. He knew this, he knew it all, but he couldn't accept it.

"Hinata! You stupid fool! **Answer me!**" he shouted, his voice cracking. His fingers hit a sharp object, probably a rock, as he dug and so he stopped. He lifted his hand up and stared at it. It had turned all dirty - he was even able to feel how there was dirt beneath his fingernails - as a small drop of blood formed onto his middle finger. He looked at it for a while before he clutched the hand into a tight ball and hit the ground in anger and frustration.

"DAMN IT!" he panted and held his head low as he tried to calm himself down. Kageyama could hear the footsteps of the officer approaching, but they were slow instead of the running steps he had expected. He didn't care that he needed to leave. He didn't care as a big hand rested on his shoulder in a firm, yet gentle manner as he was kindly asked to leave. He only cared about one thing that moment.

"Hinata!" Kageyama shouted again, his voice desperate and sad. "You can't be dead! You can't be! We have practice tomorrow, and the day after that!" He filled his lungs with air again as they hurt too much for the lack of it. He threw his head up higher again and shouted even louder than before, "**Didn't you say you would beat me!? How the hell are you going to do that if you're dead, you idiot!?**" Kageyama's words, cracked by the sorrow inside of him, echoed across the silent scene, causing everyone present to look at the boy in sympathy. The boy closed his eyes and let his head hang in frustration as tears started form beneath his eyelids.

There was a long moment of silence, and no one even seemed to notice that the rain had started to fall. The slight drizzle then turned stronger only to amplify the sadness in the air as the defeated members of a certain volleyball team were guided away from the scene.

Kageyama held his head low as he was pulled up and slowly walked away like the rest of his teammates.

Then, there was a cry of shock and unbelief. "Hinata!?" Hearing this, Kageyama raised his head to look at Takeda, who had been the one to shout, and followed his line of sight. There, behind the faculty advisor, he saw a figure he never expected to see.

In the pouring rain stood, indeed, Hinata, holding his right arm as it hung limply to his side as he was covered in dirt. Even his hair was filthy and his clothes tattered, but he looked otherwise alright.

Kageyama had to blink a few times to let the reality sink into his brain. Hinata was alive. He was okay.

As everyone was too shocked to move or even speak, they could only watch as Hinata walked right before the red tape and stared at Kageyama, his eyes shining brightly as a grin slowly formed onto his face.

"Idiot. I told you – I will beat you one day. Before that happens, there is no way that I could die," the middle blocker told with confidence. To all his friends around him, hearing his voice was the the best medicine for all the worry and anxiety they had been put through. As they could finally breathe out a long sigh of relief, they went to the kid and gave him a hug or a pat on the back in joy. Kageyama, however, was a completely another matter. He stared at the merry scene in front of him for a while as he let Hinata's word sink into his head. As they did, he felt his anger rise inside of him in a whole new level. He stomped over to the shorter and was tempted to grab the other by the collar but settled for pushing an accusing finger against his chest.

"You little-! What are you doing, just walking from nowhere and sprouting nonsense like that?! Do you have any idea what you put us through, huh?! If you're fine then at least call to say so, you baka-Hinata!"

"Huh?!" Hinata countered with equal amount of anger in his tone. "Why the heck are you so angry?! You're making it sound like it would have been better if I had been stuck under that!"

"I didn't say that, you idiot! -" Kageyama continued as the other team members just sighed simultaneously.

As the two first-years continued their banter, the other members could finally let themselves relax and allow a smile to form on their faces.

The team was all gathered again, everyone alive and well.

–

"So..how did you pop up there, anyway?" Nishinoya asked the following morning as the volleyball team had gathered in the gym once again for practice. They were all keeping it lighter than usual as they were still a bit shaken up from the previous day's incident.

Hinata received the ball, which Noya had tossed him, his gaze completely focused on it as he answered, "Ah.. well, you see I was cycling when the earthquake happened. I had to stop and then I heard the earth above me move. Then, I saw how the ground started crumbling over my head. I saw a crack in the wall and so I jumped into it just in case. I became trapped, but I soon found that the crack was some sort of tunnel and so I followed it until I got out. It was super long, and my battery died from my phone so I was without light for a while and that's why it took so long to get out. I knew that there would be people where the land had fallen and so I walked back there and you know the rest."

Even though everyone was practicing, they all listened to Hinata's explanation with keen ears. Once he was finished, Noya gave a hum.  
"So that's what happened." Noya said. He grabbed another volleyball to throw at the younger before his gaze traveled to the bandage on Hinata's right arm, where he had gotten a shallow gash during his adventure thought the tunnel. "You know, we were pretty worried about you," the older said in a serious tone, causing Hinata's casual look to turn into an apologetic one.

"I-I'm sorry. I didn't mean to make you worried. I would have called to tell I was alright but there was no reception in the tunnel," Hinata told as he held his gaze on the floor. Nishinoya then shook his head and smiled. "It's fine! You're alright and that's all that matters! Still," the smile on the second-year's face turned into a mischievous grin as he continued, "Kageyama was the most worried of us all. He kept calling you over and over again even though he knew your phone was out-of-service. He even shouted at a police officer!"

Hearing his upperclassman's sentence, Kageyama stopped everything that he was doing and turned to look at the other before the ball he was supposed to receive hit his face, sending him tumbling on the floor. He was, however, on his feet the very next second, his face red with obvious embarrassment as he marched next to the very much shorter upperclassman. "I-I did not!" he tried to argue, but it was no use. Hinata's face twisted in amusement at Kageyama's actions and he let out a small laugh, causing the other to just turn more and more red in the face with both anger and embarrassment.

Then, Hinata turned to look at the taller with bright, honest eyes as he had a smile on his face. It was not a teasing one, which caused Kageyama's anger to lessen considerably.

"Thank you, Kageyama. And sorry for making you worry." There was only honesty behind those words, which threw Kageyama back a bit. He hadn't expected for the orange-haired to say something like it.

Smiling, Hinata continued, "but like I said, I won't die before I beat you. Still, right now this team needs the most powerful combination there is to win. That's why-" Hinata said and lifted his right hand up. "-once more, toss the ball to me."

Kageyama only stared at the other for a while, all his earlier anger and embarrassment gone, before he closed his eyes as he huffed in amusement while a smirk formed on his face. _'Seriously, this volleyball-freak..'_

"You asked for it!" he shouted before grabbing a ball from the ball cart. By then, Hinata had sprinted to the net.

The rest of the team then felt their minds set in ease once again as they heard Kageyama's hand touching the surface of the ball and saw the way Hinata jumped in the air before spiking the ball successfully to the other side of the court.

The oddball combo was back in business.

* * *

**I hope you liked this chapter.  
Also, I'm not 100% sure how all the characters address each other, so I would be eternally thankful if someone had any info on that. ALSO, I don't know exactly where in Miyagi Prefecture they live, so for this story I just went with Miyagi District. If someone does know, please, please, please tell me so I won't have to make a fool of myself.  
The next chapter will come out when I feel like it. I also hope it will be soon. Until then!  
For my guest reviewer Bemi, who asked if it would be alright to translate this story: Please send me a PM.  
**


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